The Middle East's recent surge in the global space race is probably the result of UAE's success with the Hope Probe, which has encouraged its neighbours to aim for the stars. This enthusiasm for exploring the cosmos and studying Earth from above hasn't been bogged down, even after projects were hit by the ongoing pandemic.

Following the Emirates, Saudi Arabia also went on to launch multiple satellites, and Kuwait as well as Bahrain announced the beginning of their respective journeys towards the orbit. At the same time, Egypt is on track to collaborate with China and Germany, and will start building its MirSat-2 satellite next year.

The country is close to completing the work on its own satellite assembly centre, and once it's unveiled in April, Egypt's artificial moon will be brought together at the facility. The unit called the Egyptian Space City is located near the new smart administrative capital of the country being set up near Cairo.

With its own ambitions for cosmic research, Egypt has developed its eye in the sky, with backing from China. It also wants to boost the capability to launch homegrown satellites, through a partnership with Germany.

Even after being disrupted by the lockdown, Egypt's plans for sending MirSat-2 into Earth's orbit were delayed by just three months. Earlier scheduled to go to space in September 2022, the mechanical moon will now start its journey in December next year.

Working on the design of the satellite, developed to collect info based on remote-sensing, has also allowed local Egyptian talent to gain on project experience.

Along with this project, Egypt is also leading a team of five African nations to build a development satellite, which will monitor climate change for the continent. It'll also help countries keep track of carbon emissions for sustainable development.

Speaking of cross-border collaborations that benefit the Arab world, a Japanese carrier will also be delivering UAE's lunar rover called Rashid to the moon next year.